Direct Response

July 21, 2009 — The American Marketing Association (AMA) and the American Marketing Association Foundation (AMAF) honored three nonprofit marketing leaders at its Nonprofit Marketing Conference in Chicago, IL, on July 16, 2009.  Eric Overman, Operation Smile, received the Nonprofit Marketer of the Year Award, and Anne Bergquist, YMCA of Metro Chicago, and David J. Neff, American Cancer Society High Plains, received the Special Marketing Initiatives and Social Media subcategory awards, respectively. The AMA/AMAF Nonprofit Marketer of the Year Awards honor extraordinary leadership and achievement in the field of nonprofit marketing.

NEW YORK, July 29, 2009 — The Direct Marketing Association (DMA) today unveiled its "DMA Certified Marketing Professional" program, a first of its kind global standard for direct marketing education. While the program is open to all, individuals from DMA member companies will receive additional benefits throughout their course of study, beginning with special member pricing.

Owatonna, MN, July 27, 2009 — Direct marketing job seekers will soon have a new on-line tool to help with their job search.

Jul 13, 2009, DIRECT — John “Jack” Schibrowsky, professor of marketing at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas, is the 2009 recipient of the Direct Marketing Educational Foundation’s (DMEF’s) Robert B. Clarke Outstanding Educator Award.

Owatonna, MN, July 13, 2009 — Hundreds of direct marketers, agencies and service providers are offering some new glimmers of hope for direct marketing job seekers, according to the latest Bernhart Associates employment update.

More commonly called “canvassing” in the United States, face-to-face fundraising engages a younger donor base than more traditional media, with the average age of new donors between 32 and 33.

In a world of aging supporter bases, the ability to bring on board the next generations of donors, and get them engaged early, can be a significant plus for nonprofit fundraisers.

Imagine a school fundraising letter so personlized that it contains a quote not from just any teacher at the school, but rather from your child’s teacher. Or both your children’s different teachers. A letter that also went to the Joneses down the street, but with quotes from the Jones kids’ teachers.

Variable data imaging allows mailers to create mail pieces with different, often highly personalized text and images; its use so far has been mostly by for-profit mailers for high-value direct-mail campaigns, bills, statements and invoices. But Sarasota, Fla.-based private school The Out-of-Door Academy took a shot with it and found great success.

Not long ago, I was shopping at Whole Foods when I realized with a jolt that I was just an appliquéed theme sweater away from turning into my mother.

There I was, squinting helplessly at a product label I couldn’t read. Hoping to auto focus my eyes like a telephoto lens, I stretched the item out as far as my hand would reach and brought it back again to within an inch of my face. No luck.

When used in concert with each other and with your other fundraising strategies, omnipresent technological companions such as TVs, cell phones and computers can help you net more quality donors and perhaps even nudge them into the fundraising holy ground that is monthly giving.

Is your organization “pushing the envelope” with direct mail? Tell us about your most daring DM efforts.